Lady Outlaws make history with wins

The Lady Outlaws basketball team made history at Sisters High School on Tuesday, January 31, when they took down the Cascade Cougars 39-34 for the first time since the inception of the Capital Conference.

Sisters started out with all cylinders firing to take an 18-4 lead at the end of the first quarter.

“We played extremely well,” said Coach Bill Blevins. “Our full court press was very effective and caused a lot of turnovers.”

The Outlaws struggled in the second quarter and were outscored 10-8. Cascade’s defense caused havoc and according to Blevins his team turned the ball over way too many times.

The third quarter proved to be more of the same. The Outlaws were outscored 12-4 and had trouble handling the Cougars’ defensive pressure.

“We didn’t do well on the boards either,” said Blevins. “They (Cascade) got a lot of second chance shots against us.”

Cascade tied the game up in the final period 32-32.

“We were struggling trying to score,” said Blevins, “and then we hit seven straight points within the next three minutes.”

Cammy Jacobson hit a big shot to give the Outlaws the lead and Jenny Boswell hit a free throw to put Sisters up by three. Katie Hughes stole the ball for a lay-in and Boswell followed with a steal and lay-in to extend Sister’s lead to 39-32.

Cascade scored in the final seconds to bring the game to a close at 39-34.

Blevins noted the play of Cortney Metcalf and Cammy Jacobson.

“Cortney played great full court defense,” said Blevins, “and did a great job of blocking out. She kept some big girls off the boards. Cammy played with some great confidence and hit some big buckets for us and ended the game with a career high eight points.”

Boswell led the Outlaws with 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven steals and three assists. Katie Hughes had 11 points, five rebounds and three steals and Jacobson contributed eight points and four rebounds.

Three days later the Outlaws beat North Marion 44-43. The win was a first-ever victory for the Outlaws on North Marion’s home court.

Sisters started off sluggish and scored only four points in the first quarter. At the half the Outlaws were down 19-12.

“We didn’t look like we were a team that was ready to play basketball,” said Blevins. “We shot poorly and played poor defense and when you give the other team a little confidence it makes things tough for the rest of the night.”

In the second half Sisters fought back and turned things around. The Outlaws took a 12-point lead with approximately four minutes remaining in the final period. North Marion came back quickly and tied the game with just over a minute left in the game.

“I’ve never seen a team give up a lead like we managed to tonight,” said Blevins.

In the final minute Jenny Boswell managed to go in for a drive and made the bucket to put Sisters up 42-40. Sisters stole the ball at the other end and went into a stall. Elyss Clasen was fouled, went to line and was good on both her shots. Sisters extended their lead to 44-40. North Marion threw up a three at the buzzer. The shot was good and the game ended in a sweet 44-43 victory for Sisters.

Boswell led the Outlaws with 18 points, 13 rebounds and five steals and Hughes added nine points that all came in the second half.

“We would have liked to have played better, but any win on the road is a great win,” said Blevins. “We’ve never won at North Marion and it’s a tough place to play. I think we responded well in the second half and that was encouraging.”

Sisters will play host to Sweet Home on Friday, February 10.